The position in Watford
There are 1,946 unique commercial properties in Watford with a certificate on the Energy Performance of Buildings Register. Of those, 1,358 – 69.8% – are rated below EPC B, which is 6.3 percentage points better than the England and Wales average of 76.1%.
The largest category locally is retail & financial services, and the postal towns and districts most represented are Watford, London, Watford,, Herts, Bushey. Average floor area is 670 m² and the average asset rating is 71.
387 certificates in the district have expired (19.9% of the total), of which 55 were rated F or G when issued – the least comfortable position on the register, and the one owners are least likely to know about.
Key figures
Band distribution
| Band | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar | vs England & Wales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A+ | 7 | 0.4% | +0.1 | |
| A | 74 | 3.8% | -0.3 | |
| B | 507 | 26.1% | +6.6 | |
| C | 630 | 32.4% | -0.8 | |
| D | 437 | 22.5% | -3.2 | |
| E | 221 | 11.4% | -1.5 | |
| F | 24 | 1.2% | -0.7 | |
| G | 46 | 2.4% | -0.1 |
Commercial stock by sector
| Sector | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Retail & financial services | 760 | 39.1% | |
| Offices & workshops | 491 | 25.2% | |
| Restaurants, cafes & pubs | 224 | 11.5% | |
| Storage & distribution | 185 | 9.5% | |
| General & special industrial | 52 | 2.7% | |
| Hospitals & care homes | 44 | 2.3% | |
| Community & day centres | 41 | 2.1% | |
| Assembly & leisure | 33 | 1.7% |
Floor area – who the 2031 standard catches
The 2031 EPC B standard is expected to apply only to buildings over 1,000 m². In Watford that line falls here:
| Floor area | Properties | Share | Share, shown as a bar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 250 m² | 1,074 | 55.2% | |
| 250–500 m² | 346 | 17.8% | |
| 500–1,000 m² | 236 | 12.1% | |
| 1,000–2,500 m² | 178 | 9.1% | |
| 2,500–10,000 m² | 98 | 5.0% | |
| Over 10,000 m² | 14 | 0.7% |
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For editors and journalists
Quote – attributable to evenEco
Please attribute to evenEco and link to evenhub.uk/commercial/areas/watford/. Figures derived from the GOV.UK Energy Performance of Buildings Register, deduplicated to the most recent certificate per property. Media enquiries: contact us.
Shareable summary – Watford
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Commercial properties analysed | 1,946 |
| Below EPC B | 1,358 (69.8%) |
| Below EPC E – unlettable without exemption | 70 (3.6%) |
| Over 1,000 m² and below EPC B | 163 |
| Expired certificates | 387 (19.9%) |
| Average floor area | 670 m² |
| National rank (share below EPC B) | 300 of 319 |
Common questions
How many commercial properties in Watford are below EPC B?
1,358 of 1,946 – 69.8% of the commercial stock on the register. That is 6.3 percentage points better than the England and Wales average of 76.1%.
How many buildings in Watford are caught by the 2031 EPC B standard?
163 commercial buildings in Watford are over 1,000 m² and currently rated below EPC B, which is the cohort the 2031 standard is aimed at.
How many commercial buildings in Watford are already unlettable?
70 are rated F or G. Letting those without a registered exemption has been unlawful since 1 April 2023. A further 55 have an expired certificate that was rated F or G.
Where does Watford rank nationally?
300 of 319 local authorities, ranked by the share of commercial stock below EPC B, with rank 1 being the highest share.
Local authorities with a similar profile
South Cambridgeshire
69.9% below EPC B · 2,565 properties
See the data →Tewkesbury
69.8% below EPC B · 1,530 properties
See the data →Wokingham
69.8% below EPC B · 2,147 properties
See the data →West Lindsey
69.7% below EPC B · 1,388 properties
See the data →Oxford
69.5% below EPC B · 2,901 properties
See the data →Chichester
69.3% below EPC B · 2,576 properties
See the data →